CHINA> Focus
The warm hearts behind cold masks
By He Na, Wang Zhuoqiong, Xin Dingding and Ju Chuanjiang (China Daily)
Updated: 2009-05-21 10:11

Dealing with foreigners has proved one of the biggest challenges for nurses. Of the 119 people so far isolated in the hospital because of their contact with suspected or confirmed H1N1 flu cases, 49 have been from overseas.

The warm hearts behind cold masks

Liu said hospital staff often joked they were working at the United Nations as they have had to cope with 23 different nationalities.

Among those in observation at Ditan was an Italian couple who traveled to China on their honeymoon - unfortunately on the same flight as a suspected virus patient.

"They were nervous when they first arrived," said Liu, "so to make them feel at home we sent staff to buy them some spaghetti. They were very happy after that. Also, we would greet them in Italian, saying buongiorno instead of hello, which we picked up from the in-house translator.

"They were here for three days and when they were discharged they said they would continue with their original plans to explore China."

Although people from English-speaking countries find it relatively easy to communicate in China, patients from Japan, the Republic of Korea and other Asian nations have had to settle with using body language or drawing pictures.

"To our surprise, foreigners enjoyed this kind of communication a lot. They could feel our friendly hearts under the cold protective clothes," said Liu. "But whenever we have a new foreigner, we make an effort to put together greetings and a few sentences in their language, too."

Liu's boyfriend Zhang Ming also works on the frontline in the battle against the H1N1 influenza. He is the principal doctor for an overseas student surnamed Liu, who was Beijing's first confirmed case on Saturday, May 16.

The couple has not seen each other for three days, but nurse Liu said their situation was still better than some of their colleagues. She added: "Some staff are not getting enough time to take care of their children and parents."

As of yesterday, the hospital had discharged all but 17 of the patients under observation, with the rest expected to get the all clear on Tuesday.

"Each person, as they left the hospital, has given us a warm hug. It is the best reward for our efforts," said Liu.